Ḥusayn-McMahon correspondence, a series of letters exchanged in 1915–16, during World War I, between Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī, emir of Mecca, and Sir Henry McMahon, the British high commissioner in Egypt. In general terms, the correspondence effectively traded British support of an independent Arab state in exchange for Arab assistance in opposing the Ottoman Empire. It was later contradicted by the incompatible terms of the Sykes-Picot Agreement, secretly concluded between Britain and France in May 1916, and Britain’s Balfour Declaration of 1917.

A member of the Hāshimite clan (a line descended from the Prophet Muhammad), Ḥusayn ibn ʿAlī was appointed as the emir of Mecca in 1908. Although the Ottoman Empire officially administered the region, the position of emir—which carried the responsibilities of overseeing the safekeeping of the holy sites at Mecca and Medina and managing the hajj (pilgrimage)—was one of prestige and provided a measure of autonomy. Ḥusayn’s personal ambitions were somewhat broader, however, and included extending his autonomy and securing for his family the hereditary right to the office of emir. Ḥusayn mistrusted the Young Turk government then in power in Istanbul, which had indicated a preference to rule the holy places directly and so threatened the autonomy of Ḥusayn’s position. In an effort to support his ambitions, Ḥusayn reached out to the British. Although Britain initially declined an opportunity to cooperate with Ḥusayn against the Turks, following the entry of the Ottomans into World War I, the British perceived strategic value in partnering with a Muslim ally.

Expansion of the Ottoman Empire.

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In July 1915 Ḥusayn took the opportunity to send a letter to McMahon detailing the conditions under which he would consider a partnership with the British. Ḥusayn, who claimed to represent all Arabs, effectively sought independence for the entirety of the Arabic-speaking lands to the east of Egypt. McMahon, however, insisted that certain areas falling within the French sphere of influence, such as the districts of Mersina and Alexandretta and land lying west of Damascus (Ḥimṣ, Ḥamāh, and Aleppo; i.e., modern Lebanon), would not be included and emphasized that British interests in Baghdad and Basra would require special consideration. Ḥusayn disagreed with the exception of the French-claimed areas and stipulated that certain rules had to govern British activity in Baghdad and Basra, terms to which McMahon did not give his assent; in the end, the matters were set aside for discussion at a later date. Ultimately, the highly ambiguous correspondence was in no way a formal treaty, and disagreements on several points persisted unresolved.

In addition to disagreements within the letters themselves, conflicts of interest were magnified by secret negotiations between Britain and France that culminated in 1916 in the Sykes-Picot Agreement, which effectively re-portioned between them the entirety of the Ottoman Empire, and later by the Balfour Declaration, which assured British support for the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people. Ḥusayn, however, apparently sufficiently convinced of British support, announced the launch of his Arab revolt against the Ottomans in June 1916. Although the revolt was relatively minor, with British backing the Arab forces succeeded in dominating the Hejaz region of the Arabian peninsula, as well as Al-ʿAqabah and Damascus.

In late 1918 Ḥusayn’s son Fayṣal entered Damascus and began to set up an administration there in accordance, he believed, with his father’s understanding with the British. In March 1920 Greater Syria (Syria, along with Transjordan, Palestine, and Lebanon) was proclaimed independent from rule by foreign powers and was declared a constitutional monarchy with Fayṣal as king, a move that directly challenged French interests there. At the Conference of San Remo in April 1920, it was France’s claims to Syria that were formalized, and Syria was placed under French mandate. The decision (and Fayṣal’s capitulation to the terms of the agreement) sparked violent unrest that was met in July by French forces, who imposed an easy defeat and forced Fayṣal into exile.

The Ḥusayn-McMahon correspondence remained a point of heated contention thereafter, particularly as it related to Palestine, which the British claimed was included in the land to be set aside for the French. Although it is uncertain precisely what Ḥusayn expected or even what exactly McMahon had offered, it is certain that the Arabs achieved far less from the ambiguous arrangement than they had anticipated.

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